Heist
by ohfortuneslost
Summary: Eric Northman is a thief known by many names, with many disguises, but is only really himself around his wife and partner in the 'business', Sookie Stackhouse. AU AH
1. Heist: Tiffany & Co

**Disclaimer: Don't own SVM, the Waldorf=Astoria, or Tiffany & Co. Unfortunately to all.**

**A/N: Yes, well aware that I have TWO unfinished stories, but this story is for the fabulous Lilabitbtf who bid on me for the Vampire Author Auction for Support Stacie. Thanks Beth, you are fabulous! She really is folks; she pretty much gave me creative license, but merely requested that I make a reference to nutella somewhere in the story. It shall be done. Thanks again!**

In Tiffany's jewelry store on a sunny Sunday morning, a man with dark brown hair, scruffy beard, and thick French accent was examining a piece of jewelry.

Even as he was talking, he was gazing around the store, which was nearly empty, as the store had just opened. Only one other couple was in the shop, and they were talking to the remaining clerks.

He looked out the window in amazement, and as he turned back, he smiled sheepishly at the manager who was giving him an odd look. "I cannot help it you see, the city; it is so beautiful, no?" He asked, gesturing out at 57th Avenue, his accent blending the words exotically, and making them almost unrecognizable to even the most trained ear.

When the manager managed to comprehend what was being said to him, his suspicious look relaxed into one of warmth, seamlessly. "Yes, yes, people travel the world to come here!"

The Frenchmen smirked and smoothly said, "I am aware," Which caused the manager to laugh in surprise, and the Frenchmen joined in after a moment.

"So what do you think about the piece?" The manager asked after the laughter died down, and he immediately got back to business.

"May I?" The Frenchmen asked, and when the manager nodded his head, he gently lifted the necklace from the manager's hand, and inspected it more closely.

It was a gorgeous necklace, every inch of it draped in diamonds. "Yes, the city is gorgeous, but I believe that my wife prefers diamonds. I can buy them for her." He chuckled, before handing the necklace back into the eager hands of the manager. "Yes, I believe I will take it," he said, before slipping his hand down to his pocket.

The manager's eyes widened, as inside he triumphantly crowed. He had managed to sell a piece worth 1.8 million dollars. That would make his commission for the year. He carefully laid the necklace back onto its stand, minutely adjusting it, and taking great care in placing it just so. He looked up with a goofy grin on his face; ready to take what he assumed would be a Black AmEx, but instead came eye to eye down the barrel of a gun.

He immediately looked over to his two associates, only to see them in similar positions, the 'customers' they had been chatting up, now pointing guns in their faces as well. His eyes darted back to the gun, while at the same time, his hand inched down towards the underside of the counter, preparing to push the panic button.

Immediately the gun was shoved up against his throat, causing his hand to freeze in its pursuit. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," the Frenchman said, sounding for all the world, like they were still carrying on a cheerful conversation.

He turned to speak to the two other gunmen, while still keeping his gun shoved against the manager's throat. He barked out something in a foreign language, that didn't sound French at all. He turned back to the manager and politely said, "To the wall if you please," he said, gesturing to the back wall, which was well away from the windows.

The manager and the two other store clerks were forced to face the wall, with their hands behind their heads, and cell phones taken from them. The manager suddenly found himself with his master key after a quick search of his suit.

Behind him, he could hear cases being opened, no glass being broken, very discreet. The Frenchmen still stood behind them, keeping watch, and casually said, "Please, don't try anything, I would hate to shoot you all, as you've been very accommodating, but know this, I will if I have to," he said, his voice progressing from casual and cheerful to hard and deadly towards the end.

After five long agonizing minutes to the manager, he heard the cases being shut and relocked. Their cell phones were slipped back into their pockets, and the Frenchman gestured with the gun to their previous positions. "You may go back to work now," he said, his voice back to cheerful.

The manager turned around aghast; noticing that the two accomplices were already gone, and that the store was completely empty. They had cleaned him out of ten million dollars in jewels in under ten minutes. He could feel a stroke coming on.

He was prodded with the gun. "Back to your station please," the gunman insisted, prodding him harder still.

The manager returned to stand back behind the counter, and noticed with some delight, that the necklace that he had been showing to the Frenchman was still on its stand. His heart sunk, when the gunman, noticing his sudden joy, chuckled, shaking his head and saying, "Non non, that is for mon chere, my wife, therefore, it must be wrapped of course, in your famous blue."

The manager grabbed a necklace box and tissue paper, and tried to go about boxing up the necklace as if it were any other day, any other sale. With shaking hands, he handed his last piece of merchandise to the jovial Frenchman, who winked, and tucked it into a previously unnoticed briefcase, and said, "Merci beaucoup, monsieur," and casually walked out of the shop, disappearing into the wave of unsuspecting masses.

The moment the door was shut, and he was out of sight, the manager's female clerk, immediately dropped to her knees, sobbing hysterically, while the male clerk promptly unloaded his guts onto the previously immaculate floors. The manager took all of this in with an impassive look on his face, before heading to the back while pulling out his cell phone. He called the police and reported what had happened, and then went off in search of new pants.

* * *

A tall blond man walked cheerfully down the streets of New York City Sunday evening, heading for dinner with his lovely wife. He was whistling cheerfully, garnering strange looks from all that immediately transformed into appreciative looks from all women.

He passed by an electronics store with a TV in the window turned to the news, where a news woman was gravely informing the public about the robbery at Tiffany's. He turned his head slightly towards the broadcast, but other than that, didn't even break his stride.

He dodged the many people littering the sidewalk effortlessly, while his unobtrusive briefcase stayed firmly at his side. He breezed past everyone, heading straight to the entrance of the grand and illustrious Waldorf=Astoria. The doorman quickly jumped in his way to open the door for him, which the man acknowledged with a twenty dollar bill tossed his way.

He strode past the front lobby and briskly strode to the elevator, pushing in for the third floor, already looking forward to his steak at the famed Bull and Bear steakhouse. As he was in the elevator, he checked his watch and cursed. 8:02. He was late.

He hopped off the moment the doors slid open, and with the hand that was not occupied by his briefcase, came up to smooth back his hair, in case it was mussed. He would never dishonor his wife by looking unfit for public viewing, especially at the Waldorf=Astoria, her favorite hotel on the East coast.

He waved off the maitre-d, having already spotted her, her blonde hair standing out like a beacon in the darkly lit restaurant. Her back was to him, so he spared his dignity, and practically ran to her side, though the moment he was in her viewpoint, he slowed down, trying his best to look casual.

She smirked at him, seeing right through his façade, which he loved that she was capable of doing. "You're late Eric. Again." she said casually, looking at him with an arched brow over her wine glass.

He picked up her hand and brushed his lips across it before sitting down across from her. "My apologies my dear Sookie, I was caught up at work. It won't happen again," he vowed, his eyes twinkling.

Her smirk widened. "I'm sure," she responded playfully. "But how are you going to make it up to me this time?" She asked, while handing him his menu.

His eyes widened in mock surprise. "What is this I hear? Mother Theresa actually _wants _something? My word, and is that a new dress?" At that he was truly shocked, usually he had to go with her shopping, and twist her arm to get her to buy anything nearing expensive. It wasn't like he couldn't afford it.

"Well, you abandoned me for work all day, and then you were late for dinner! What's a girl to do?" She asked, widening her eyes innocently.

"Love me anyways," he responded softly, taking her hand and once more bringing it to his lips.

She melted, and smiled sweetly at him. "Too late," she murmured softly.

Their sweet moment was interrupted by the waiter coming by. "Can I get you guys anything?" He asked politely.

"Nothing at the moment," Eric growled, glaring at the waiter and scaring him off.

"Eric! Don't be rude, he's just trying to do his job!" Sookie hissed at him.

"Part of his job is to pay attention to timing, clearly, his was off," Eric responded, not at all put off by her tone of voice. "Now, back to our previous conversation, are you wearing something new?" He asked, raking his eyes up and down her body, sending chills down her spine.

"Yes, I bought it just today." She looked down at herself as well, and couldn't believe it was really her sitting in a ridiculously expensive restaurant, in an even more ridiculous expensive hotel, in an insanely expensive designer outfit. It seemed like only yesterday that she was just a small town Louisiana girl.

Her outfit consisted of a black silk skirt with a matching shirt with rosettes on the sleeve. She fell in love with it at first sight.

"I trust it cost me an insane amount of money?" He asked endearingly, still appreciating how the blouse hugged her curves.

"It was from Bergdorf Goodman's," she replied, naming one of the most lavish department stores in the world, and his smile widened. "And speaking of money, here's your card back," she said, and rummaged through her purse, before locating, and handing him a Black AmEx. He immediately handed it back to her, and she opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off.

"Don't start my love. You are my wife, and what is mine is yours, and I have that card, so now, you do as well," he said cheerfully, picking up his menu and flipping through it. She glared at him, but knew it was pointless to argue, so she merely placed the card back in her wallet.

She followed suit, perusing through casually, though looking over her menu pointedly. "Don't get used to it Eric, this was just a onetime thing, JC Penny's works just fine for me." Luckily she looked down in time, and didn't see him wince. She would have blown up at him, fancy restaurant be damned. He didn't understand it, all he wanted to do was treat her like the queen she was, but she fought him on it tooth and nail.

She truly meant It though, shopping in expensive stores was okay with Eric, because he looked like he belonged, but the moment she stepped foot in Bergdorf Goodman's, she was looked down upon, and every floor she perused, a salesperson followed her. She knew it wasn't their phenomenal service that they bragged about, she wasn't stupid, they were trying to make sure she wasn't stealing anything. If she hadn't fallen in love with that outfit, she never would have bought a thing from them, she was so offended.

"I think I'll order their famous Angus steak, what about you, darling?" He asked, gazing at her affectionately.

"I'll have the same thing," she responded, so they flagged down their waiter, and gave him their orders. "Now, I believe that I requested that you give me something to make up for leaving me, and then keeping me waiting."

His eyes lit up at the idea of being able to give her his gift, and furthermore at her actually requesting a gift; it was almost unheard of. He reached down to unlock his briefcase, and pulled out the blue box. "I believe you did indeed, will this get me off the hook?" He gave her the box, and delighted in her eager expression as she took in the shade of blue.

She removed the ribbon, and opened the box, and gasped at the necklace that lay inside. "Oh, Eric, it's gorgeous."

"Yes, yes," he said impatiently, "But nothing compares to you." He got up and gently moved her hair to the side, and helped her clasp it around her neck. Before he put her hair back in place, he whispered in her ear, "You know the rules lover."

She sighed as he returned to his seat across from her. She stroked the hundreds of diamonds that adorned her neck, the necklace probably would have cost Eric at least a million dollars, but he didn't bother with buying it.

She sighed again; she certainly did know the rules. The necklace was hers, but she could only wear it in public for this one night, and then after that, only around Eric or his 'friends'. Other than that, it would be put away for at least five years until, if she was somehow caught with it, she could feign innocence.

She knew it was wrong, but God help her, that was the man she had fallen in love with, and she'd fallen in love with him long before he'd started this 'job'.

Their steaks were delivered in a timely manner, and they had a lovely dinner, laughing and joking together, and there were many tender hand kisses that were causing her to melt slowly. After the meal, they went to Sir Harry's Bar, the nightclub, and literally danced the night away, before stumbling up to their suite on the 30th floor, and fucking until 2 am, where they finally collapsed, exhausted, but happy.

**A/N 2: Hope you liked, will post another chapter sometime next week. Nothing Personal probably Monday or Tuesday, and Shattered sometime this weekend, if all goes according to plan.**

**Factual Factoids**

**A Black AmEx card IS a real card, however, to get one, you must be INVITED, there is no application. AmEx, has never expressly said what the terms for being invited are, but it is speculated (by my father and the fine folks at Wikipedia, lol) that you must SPEND, not make, SPEND, at least 250,000 a year. The base fee for an American Black AmEx is 5000, plus another 2500 a month to keep it. It is made out of anodized titanium. Not plastic. TITANIUM. Holding this card comes with serious perks. AmEx has a 24-hour concierge service catering to these clients alone. If you want to ride first class on an airplane, if you don't have your own (pssh, if you have a Black AmEx I hope you have your own plane!), and you just show up at the airport, no reservation, just have your papers in order, and they will kick someone out of first class to let you ride it!**

**The Waldorf=Astoria, and everything I mentioned in relation to it, is a real place in New York City, and is a very swanky hotel. Floors 27****th****-42****nd**** are part of the boutique hotel, where famous/rich people live. Eric and Sookie went to the 30****th**** floor, so they kind of OWN a room at the Waldorf.**

**Bergdorf Goodman is a real fancy department store, with its flagship store in New York City, and it is HUGE. And they WILL follow you around. There is nothing in there less than a hundred dollars. Guarantee. **

**Tiffany & Co. is a world famous jewelry shop featured in the mega popular movie, Breakfast at Tiffany's, starring Audrey Hepburn. The store mentioned in this story is their flagship store, and while I have never been there, I can assure you that there literally is millions of dollars in jewelry there, and that it would never be that easy to rob it. But hey, fiction!**

**Necklace and outfit mentioned on Sookie are real, links posted in profile soon!**


	2. Favor: Kidnapping

Sookie woke up to find Eric in an arm chair by the window, wearing only a pair of black slacks, and cleaning his gun. He looked up from his work when he heard her sit up, the sheets and blankets pooling around her waist, leaving her chest bare to his eager eyes.

"My love, you are magnificent," he said, putting his gun down and climbing into the bed to pin her down and hover over her taut body. She however, pouted, and pushed him off of her to climb out of the bed, and walked over to the gun, where she picked it up with distaste, dangling it from between her fingers.

"Eric, you know how I feel about guns," she complained, and he immediately rolled out of bed and took it from her, cradling it gently and replacing it back into its rosewood box. She rolled her eyes. Eric treated that gun better than she did her jewelry.

"I'm sorry, I do know how you feel, however, I had expected to be finished cleaning it long before you woke up. Then I had planned to rejoin my gorgeous wife in bed," he responded, looking up from replacing the box back into the safe, grinning winningly at her. His eyes roved over her naked form, enjoying how comfortable she was in the nude around him.

He did know how she felt about guns, of course, and it never ceased to amaze him that a back woods country girl held such disgust for them. In fact the only gun he was allowed to keep in the bedroom was the handgun that was sitting on their bedside table, just in case. The one in the box was the one he carried on his person at all times outside of their bedroom. It was a Glock 22 .40 S& W, and as Eric was always telling her, the easiest pistol in the world to conceal, which was, of course, the reason why he carried it.

She rolled her eyes once again, but couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face at his words. She walked up to him and said, poking him gently in the chest, "You big flatterer, you think I'm going to just fall in bed with you for some pretty words?"

He laughed, wrapping his arms around her waist, and drawing her in close. "Maybe not for some pretty words, but as I recall, I gave you some pretty jewelry last night, will you fall into bed with me for that?" He asked teasingly, leaning in to nip at her lips.

Sookie laughed along with him. "So now you think I'm so kind of vain woman, who only cares about the material things in life, is that it?"

He chuckled, and leaned in close to whisper in her ear, all teasing gone from his eyes, "You my love, are without a doubt, the most generous, selfless, charitable person I have ever met," he followed his words up with kisses along her ear and neck.

She moaned, low and sensuous, wrapping her hands through his mane of blond hair to tug his head back to look him in the eyes. "Maybe flattery _does _get you everywhere," she whispered before taking his lips within hers, and kissing him.

He wrapped his own hands through her hair, deepening the kiss, until her back was arched and she was whimpering into his mouth, her hands loosened from his hair, and wrapped around his neck, clinging to him desperately.

He slowly straightened them back up, removing one hand from her hair, and drifting down her sides, feather light, making her shiver. His hand made its way down her right leg, and to her knee, where he grabbed it, and hitched her naked leg around his waist, before switching hands, and repeating the process with her other leg.

When she was properly anchored to his body, he turned back towards the bed, and gently laid her down upon it, removing his lips, and giving her time to breath, which she did, in great gasps and gulps, trying to quell the shivering. He ghosted his lips down her neck, to the junction between her neck and shoulder; her sweet spot. Her breath hitched, at which he chuckled, and kissed his way back up to her ear where he whispered, "Breath my lover."

She once again took great gulps of air, as his lips made his way down her body. When he made it to her right breast, and took it within his hot mouth, her head threw back, and she braided his hair through her fingers, and pressed his head farther into her chest. His tongue began to flick her nipple in time with her short puffs of breath, while his left hand left a blazing trail up to her left breast, where it settled firmly there, and began to squeeze in time with the flicks of his tongue.

Sookie was going into overload, and her head was thrashing with all the sensations overwhelming her body. "Eric," she moaned, tugging on his hair, and Eric, ever obedient to his wife's demands, especially in bed, immediately lifted his head, releasing her breast with a faint 'pop'. "Eric," she whimpered, "go lower, lower please."

He chuckled, and obeyed instantly, sliding down her body before she even had time to blink, and placing his mouth upon her mound. Immediately she jerked up and screamed with the shock, her hands fisting themselves into the sheets below her, and Eric had to bring his hands to her legs to spread them further, and to stop her thrashing.

He drank from her as if she was an endless fountain, and held the key to immortal youth. His tongue fucked her tight sheath, before moving up towards her clit and kissing it lightly. He moved his left knee up to pin down her right leg, freeing up his left hand to plunge his fingers into her cavern, causing her to moan aloud. His tongue began to flicker faster on her clit, as his fingers moved deeper and deeper, searching, until he found her elusive g-spot, and with a wail, Sookie came, gushing onto his fingers.

When she had recovered some time later, and her breathing had slowed to regular, she looked down to see Eric's head resting upon her breast with his eyes closed, apparently very comfortable. She studied his form, and noticed to her embarrassment that his pants were still on. "Eric?" She murmured, lightly stroking his hair.

"Hmm," he muttered back lazily, rubbing his head onto her hands, much like a cat.

"You didn't come, did you? You pleasured me, but you never found your release?" She asked, and he lifted his head to look her straight in the eye.

"Sookie, it doesn't bother me, all I care about is your pleasure," he said, gazing into her eyes, and trying to make her understand his position.

"Well, I care about your pleasure, and I want you to find some!" She hissed, before flipping them over, so she was on top, and he was on the bottom.

"Well if you insist little one." Eric gave a cocky grin, before crossing his arms behind his head, and staring down at his glorious wife who was about to give him a magnificent blow job.

She stalked down his body, licking and blowing cool air on certain spots, making him shiver, and lose some of his cocky edge. She made her way down to his erect member, and stared him straight in the eyes, and said, "Oh, I do insist," just before wrapping her lips around his cock, taking him in slowly.

Eric hissed at the sensation of her moist mouth wrapped around his need member, and resisted the urge to bring his hands to her head, and shoving her down. He knew she wanted this to be the same experience he just gave her; a loving one. Frantic fucking could always come later.

She bobbed her head up and down his cock, taking in more and more each time, until she could go no further, and wrapped her hands around the rest of him, twisting him lightly. She slowly pulled up, and released him before coming down to lick the head, while reaching with her hands to give tribute to his balls.

She took him back into her mouth, and this time he could not resist lightly moving his hips up, gently fucking her mouth with his engorged flesh. She moaned, the vibrations causing a torrent of shivers to run all over his body.

Eric was going crazy, and he knew he could not take much more of this, and wanted to be inside his wife when he came. When she released his member once more, he took that opportunity to pull her head up, and force her to look at him, and see him shaking his head.

With a sigh she sat up, and shook back her hair. She opened her mouth to speak to him, but before she could say anything, he had grabbed her about the waist, and easily lifted her up and over his body, to hover at the tip of his member. She helped direct his cock to her opening, and he released her hips, allowing her dripping wet center to slide easily down his pole. They both moaned loudly at the sensations, and Sookie paused for a moment to adjust to the feeling.

After a moment, she was comfortable, and, pressing her hands against his chest, began to move up and down, rotating her hips every so often, with Eric below her thrusting up slowly.

With great difficulty, they kept their loving romantic, and truly made love until they finally came; Eric with a loud groan, and Sookie with a light whimper before she collapsed across his chest, with his member still wedged inside her.

Eric's phone began vibrating on the bedside table, and he lifted Sookie off him, and laid her next to him, and wrapped the blankets around her, as he drifted off to sleep.

With some reluctance, he turned away from her, and answered his phone, "Northman."

* * *

The next time Sookie awoke, her eyes immediately darted towards the arm chair by the window, which was empty.

Her eyes then darted towards the door, and noticed that her Alexander McQueen luggage was stacked next to Eric's non descript luggage.

"Eric?" She called out into the suite, still gazing at the suitcases suspiciously. He immediately appeared in the door, completely dressed in the same slacks as before, with a sky blue shirt that matched his eyes tucked into them, his suspenders on, and his jacket draped over his arm.

"Yes darling?" He asked, while leaning against the wall, and shrugging on his jacket.

"Are we taking a trip somewhere?" She asked, her voice syrupy sweet.

He internally grinned, having already anticipating the minefield he was about to step into. "Yes, we are checking out of the Waldorf, and instead will be taking up residence in the Hotel Burnham, in Chicago." He openly grinned when Sookie's eyes lit up. She loved the Hotel Burnham, almost as much as she loved the Waldorf.

"Why are we going to Chicago? For how long?" She asked, getting up from the bed, and putting on her La Perla underwear.

Eric sighed; this was the part he was dreading. He decided just to dive in, and go for it. "We will be doing a favor for Felipe de Castro," he replied, and winced as the happy expression on Sookie's face fell flat.

"Felipe de Castro?" She confirmed, her eyes narrowing, and her lips pursing, though she refrained from making a comment.

He nodded in reply. He knew that she couldn't stand the man, and frankly he wasn't too fond of de Castro either, he seemed far too interested in Sookie for his liking, but he was a powerful man in their world, and even Eric couldn't afford to have him as an enemy.

"Well I suppose we should get this over with," Sookie said, beginning to walk over to her luggage to pick out something to wear on the flight, but Eric's voice stopped her quest.

"I've already laid out something for you to wear."

And she turned to the bureau to see that there was already a Donna Karan black wrap skirt laid out, with an Akris gathered cream blouse, and her favorite black Louboutin pumps. She rolled her eyes, before shimmying into the outfit.

When she was finished, Eric took her arm, and led her out the door and down to the lobby. They left the luggage for the chauffer to pick up. As soon as they made their way into the lobby, all the employees stood up a bit straighter, and naturally smiled a bit bigger. The Southtons were some of their favorite guests; Eric Southton was a big tipper, and Sookie Southton was just a naturally kind and sweet woman, and everyone could tell they were deeply in love with one another.

"Are you enjoying your stay Mr. and Mrs. Southton?" The concierge asked, for once not pasting a smile on his face. He knew, as did everyone, that the only reason why they stayed there was because Mrs. Hampton loved the Waldorf, and it was apparent in their tips, and she was the only guest they'd ever had that never complained. She was their absolute favorite, and as such, they all strived to do their best for her, and make her stay as pleasurable as possible.

"Very much, Mark, but we will be checking out for a couple of weeks; David here has a business meeting in Los Angeles." Sookie replied, easily giving the kind concierge their aliases, and dummy location.

"Well, we are happy that you enjoyed your stay here, once again, and hope that you have a lovely time in Los Angeles, and when you return, your room will be ready and waiting for you, of course." Mark said, checking them out on his computer, and making a note to send housekeeping up.

"You're a good man, Mark." Eric said, sliding a hundred dollar bill across, before gallantly taking 'Mrs. Southton's' arm, and leading her out of the lobby.

They slid into the limo waiting for them, and Eric addressed the chauffeur, directing him to the private hangar they would be flying out of.

* * *

"Eric, we're here!" Sookie exclaimed excitedly, gazing down at the night life of Chicago as they began their descent.

"I see that lover," Eric replied, chuckling at her child like wonder, before turning his mind to more serious matters. "Sookie. Sookie." He had to repeat her name to get her attention. "When we get to the hangar, Alcide will be waiting for us, along with Clancy and Chow. Alcide will go with you to the hotel, while Clancy and Chow will come with me. I want to get this job done for Felipe as soon as possible."

"Well, I don't like having a bodyguard, but I understand," Sookie said, looking a little disgruntled, as the plane touched down on the tar mac.

"I knew you would," Eric responded, kissing her lightly on the lips. "But I must let you know in advance, when I return; I will have a guest with me."

"Alright, alright," Sookie murmured, already distracted by being in Chicago, and barely listening to him. Eric smirked, and helped her to her feet, and down the plane steps, to where Alcide was waiting for her. Alcide immediately took her arm, and began leading her to her limo, already listening to her chatter about their time in New York, a light smile playing across his face.

Eric waited until she was safely ensconced in the limo, and driving off before turning to his own vehicle, a shiny red corvette, with the driver's seat open and waiting for him.

"Let's go," he said to Chow and Clancy, and the two of them pulled out their guns.

* * *

Sookie was hanging her clothes up in the closet in their suite, when she heard the door open and close. She paid no mind to it, figuring it was Eric, and he would find her eventually. She wanted to finish hanging her clothes before they went out for dinner. Eric's luggage had taken twenty minutes to hang, but she was heading into the third hour. Eric liked to buy her things. She knew she could have a maid do it, but as she was from humble beginnings, she had never felt comfortable bossing others around.

After ten minutes, and Eric still had not come to greet her, she was getting a little curious, but continued to hang clothes, until she heard a woman shriek. She immediately dropped the Dior dress she was holding and rushed out to the living room in time to hear Eric hissing "Shut up!" While brandishing a gun in front of a girl's face, as she sat on the couch. She wore a low cut shirt, barely a scrap of material, and a short skirt, and she didn't look a day over eighteen, with wild eyes.

Sookie gasped, her hand going up to cover her mouth. Eric turned around at the sound, and blanched upon seeing his wife. "Sookie, I thought you were out somewhere," he began hesitantly, using his wife's alias. He didn't like to bring her into these kinds of things. Bank robberies yes, as a grifter, but not kidnappings, not guns.

"Eric, what's going on?" She asked warily, knowing that it had to be bad, if they weren't using aliases. That meant that the girl wasn't going to be living long enough to tell anyone their real names. She gazed at the girl with compassion.

"This is Felipe's favor," he responded. Sookie came closer to the girl and kneeled down to speak to her. Eric tensed up beside her.

"I'm Sookie, what's your name?" She asked politely.

"What the fuck do you care?" The girl responded callously, before lashing out with her hand, and slapping Sookie square across the face.

Eric immediately roared aloud, causing Chow and Clancy to come rushing in from the hallway, pulling their guns. Eric pushed Sookie behind him, while bringing the hand with the gun around, and smacking the girl soundly across her cheek, causing her to shriek with agony.

"Eric!" Sookie shrieked in horror, rushing into their bedroom and slamming the door.

"Watch her," Eric growled at Clancy and Chow, before following Sookie into the bedroom.

Inside the room, Sookie raged at Eric, opening bag after bag of luggage, apparently looking for something. "He's going to kill her, isn't he? You kidnap, he kills!" She shrieked at him, causing him to wince.

"Keep your voice down Sookie! And I don't know for certain that he's going to kill her…." He hedged, though it was a very slim chance that the girl was not going to die.

"Bullshit," Sookie snapped, "you know she is, otherwise you would be using aliases! God, Eric, she's only eighteen!"

"She knew what she was getting into! She knows what that life entails!" Eric raged back at her, though he kept his voice low.

Sookie bit her tongue, as she knew that those statements could apply to her as well. "Did you have to hit her?"

Eric snarled at the thought. "I will not apologize for that, she hit you! I would do it again if I had to, several times in fact!"

Sookie sneered at him, before finally opening the luggage containing all her handbags, and pulling out her Nancy Gonzalez crocodile bag, and putting all her necessities into it. She marched to the door, and flung it open, stomping through the suite, while tugging on her Louboutins.

"Where are you going?" Eric demanded, following her through the living room.

"Shopping," she snapped before leaving through the front door and slamming it behind her.

The sharp noise made him jump, and he sunk down into an arm chair groaning. Sookie only went shopping when she was very happy, had an occasion to shop for, like a wedding, or when she was extremely pissed. He had a feeling he knew what scenario it was this time.

He looked up to find Clancy, Chow, and the girl staring at him. He ignored them, and pulled out his cell phone. "Alcide. It's Eric. Sookie's left. Catch up with her in the lobby, and take her wherever she wants to go. Keep any men from her. I don't even want any male clerks around her, not tonight."

He hung up, and leaned back, and sighed, running his hands through his hair, and then over his face, exhausted beyond all belief.

**A/N: Well there you have it! Sorry it took so long to post, hopefully Nothing Personal will be up soon. I believe this is my longest chapter ever! BTW, the Southtons, David and Samantha, ARE Eric and Sookie, these are their aliases. Southton, Northman, get it? Also, this was my first 'true' lemon, so I'm nervous. Thanks for reading!**

**Factual Factoids**

**The Hotel Burnham is real, in Chicago, and housed in the historic Reliance Building.**

**Sookie is referred to as a 'grifter', this is essentially a fancy name for a con-man or woman in this case.**


	3. Escape: Sookie's Wrath

Sookie walked angrily along the Magnificent Mile, garnering appraising looks from passer by's which she ignored. She was carried five bags along each arm, and Alcide was behind her carrying still more bags.

"Is this necessary Sookie?" He puffed, struggling not to drop anything, though it was a difficult task with all the bags.

"Probably not," she admitted. "But I'm just so damn angry! So when I get angry, I shop. Shopping is the one thing that's pretty much the same in every city; and Eric and I? We travel a lot. Lots of different cities. Lots of different people. But shopping? It's pretty much the same no matter where you go. Ooh!" She squealed, stopping short in front of the Salvatore Ferragamo store, causing Alcide to nearly tip over to avoid running into her back. "I _have _to have those shoes!"

After they had exited the store, Alcide weighed down by one more bag, Sookie decided it was time to take a break and have lunch. She decided to eat at the Melting Pot, one of her favorite restaurants, due to her love of fondue.

Once they had stowed all their bags under the table, and ordered, Alcide took the chance to gently ask her, "Why are you mad at Eric? There's nothing you could have done about the girl."

She smiled sadly at him over her glass of wine. "I know that, I really do, I just hate that I'm put in that kind of situation at all." She saw Alcide open his mouth, but before he could say anything, she cut him off smoothly. "Look, I love Eric; God knows I do, but this lifestyle! I'm not talking about the clothes, or the parties. I'm talking about what just happened in the hotel room. I can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen. But I can't leave him, that would kill me! I loved him Bon Temps, I loved him before he got into this 'business', if anything, he should leave this life for me!" She gave a sad smile again. "But I can't ask him to do that either, because that would kill _him._"

Alcide gave her a quizzical look, "What do you mean? Kill him?"

Sookie rolled her eyes. "I don't mean literally, Alcide. It's just… Eric was born for this life. He's too smart, too charming, and too smooth to be anything else. Like I said, he was born for this life; he can't just leave it all behind. And I was born for Eric, I can't just leave him."

The server took that moment to bring out their fondue, and for a while the table was silent as they dipped their meat and bread, and enjoyed the flavors. Then Sookie interrupted the silence by saying, "It's not even just the fact that she was there!" She waved her dipping fork around for emphasis, while Alcide gave her a questioning look. "He wasn't even going to tell me she was there!"

"How?" Alcide asked, truly curious how the little blonde had deduced that.

"When I came out of the bedroom, the first thing he said was, 'Sookie, I thought you were out somewhere.' That's how I know!" She stabbed the air with her fork emphatically, nodding her head, and taking a big sip from her wine glass. Alcide began mentally calculating how many glasses she had, as it appeared she was well on her way to getting drunk. He winced. Eric was going to be _pissed_.

"You know what that means Al?" He groaned. Sookie was definitely drunk. She only called him Al when she was flat out drunk. "Do ya?" She slurred, and he could only shake his head in horror, flagging down the waitress and asking for the check immediately. The waitress took one look at Sookie and immediately dashed away.

"It means that he was never going to tell me that she was there! He was going to kidnap her, stow her in our hotel room, and then let Felipe pick her up, and never let me know," she said the last part in a stage whisper, looking around the room in an exaggerated manner as if expecting the people in the surrounding tables would be leaning towards them, listening in. "If he was going to lie to me about this, what else was he going to lie to me about?" She finished her little ramble by looking sadly down at her plate, tears welling in her eyes. Alcide was truly panicking at that point. The Boss's girlfriend was drunk _and _crying. This was not good.

She looked up at him with her tears streaming down her face and whispered in a broken voice, "I know that we aren't really married, but still, if he can't even tell me things, than our marriage really is a sham!"

Alcide leaned forward frantically, hoping to dispel all of her fears. He couldn't bring Sookie back to Eric drunk, crying, _and _doubting their marriage, that was just asking for a death sentence. "Sookie, listen to me," he spoke in a low voice, trying not to draw anymore eyes to their scene. "I realize that you and Eric were married under fake names, but believe me when I say that Eric does not think it's fake at all. To him, you are his wife, and there is nothing else to it. If he has lied to you in the past, it is only to protect you. You know he views you as his partner, his closest confidante, he tells you everything, things most would only dream of hearing," he leaned in closer, hoping Sookie would believe his words, but he could tell by the look in her eyes that she wasn't quite ready to let go of all her fears.

The waitress came by with the check, and rather than prolonging the scene by charging with a card, Alcide threw 200 bucks onto the table, to the waitress's relief, and tried to discreetly help Sookie out of the building, by wrapping an arm around her waist, and helping her stumble out the door, and into a cab, with three waiters trailing behind carrying the bags.

When they reached the hotel, he figured that it was private enough, and gave up trying to walk with her, as somewhere along the way, she had fallen asleep, and just picked her up in his arms and strode across the lobby into the elevator. The doorman of the hotel brought Sookie's shopping bags in, and had them sent up, shaking his head at the amount.

As Alcide entered the hall, Chow and Clancy both gave him strange looks, "Yo Alcide, you do know that when the boss told you not to let any men touch her, that included you right?" Chow called out, both he and Clancy snickering.

"Hilarious," Alcide said dryly, not amused. "Why don't you lazy fuckers open the door, as you can see, my hands are full."

"I'll bet." Clancy responded, and he and Chow once again burst into laughter, but opened the door for him to enter.

Eric stopped from his pacing the moment he heard the door open, and his eyes darkened considerably when he saw Sookie cradled in Alcide's arms. "What the fuck is going on," he asked slowly, approaching them to take his wife from Alcide's grasp.

"She's drunk," Alcide hastily stated, praying that he wouldn't be killed where he stood.

As if on cue, Sookie stirred in Eric's arms and woke up, and blinking up at him blearily, said, "You can't be mad at Al, I'm mad at you, 'kay?"

Eric chuckled and whispered, "Okay lover, be mad at me, but you need to sleep now, alright?"

Sookie yawned and snuggled into his chest. "'Kay," she muttered, already half asleep.

He chuckled again, and began to take her back to their room for her to sleep it off. "Leave," he ordered Alcide, never turning around. Alcide let out a sigh of relief and immediately left the room, heading towards the hotel bar to follow Sookie's lead and get shit faced.

* * *

When Sookie woke up, her head was throbbing out of control, and the first words she uttered were, "Ow, my head," bringing her hand up to feel it gingerly.

Eric swooped in with a giant glass of water, and two aspirin, which Sookie took grudgingly, saying, "I'm still mad at you."

He let out a big laugh, "I noticed," he said, gesturing to the giant piles of shopping bags in front of their closet, which made her blush.

"I'm sorry Eric, I guess I got carried away, you know how I get…." She trailed off, unsure of his reaction. She'd gone shopping in anger before, but never to the extent it was at on this trip. All her fears were erased however when Eric laughed loudly once again.

"My love, if this is all you do when you get angry, I consider myself a lucky man. Is it too much to presume that you bought some lingerie?" He asked with a mischievous grin, looking like a little boy.

Sookie gaped at him, but forced herself to transform it to a glare. "I'm still mad at you," she repeated from earlier.

"I had hoped so," he returned, winking saucily back at her.

"You hoped so?" She echoed in disbelief.

"Oh yes," he rolled over on top of her, his body pinning hers. "Make up sex is fun, if you remember," he winked again.

Despite herself she burst out laughing, but still shoved a pouting Eric off her, and the mood turned serious. "You weren't going to tell me about the girl were you?"

There was a long silence before he finally answered, and she had the feeling that he was choosing his words. "No, I wasn't."

"So you were going to lie to me?"

"Not lie, my lover, you would have never asked about it, and therefore I would have never had the opportunity to lie to you about it." She could almost hear the coyness in his voice, and could not stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"Semantics, Eric. If you were going to lie to me about that, what else have you lied about?" She asked with a little quaver in her voice that broke his heart.

"On this point, because you asked me directly, I will not lie to you. I have concealed a great many things from you," at that she opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, he continued, "but not for the reasons you might think.

"I am a powerful man, you know this Sookie, and to some, this is seen as dangerous. By keeping you in the dark on many things, I am keeping you safe from some that may want to harm me through you."

Sookie felt herself torn, her eyes were tearing up from the sweetness he was showing her, but inside, she was still seething from how he had treated the girl earlier. "The girl, is she dead?" She whispered, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"That, I do not know my love, but I would guess yes," he propped up on one shoulder to gauge her reaction to his words, and when she showed no visible sign of stress, he relaxed.

"Will that ever be me?" She asked quietly, and then found Eric once again pinning her down, with a ferocious look in his eyes.

"_Never_," he hissed. "I will _always _keep you safe," and with that, he swooped down to kiss her frantically. Sookie moaned into his mouth as she found her tongue dueling with his, as her hands reached to drape over him, tearing and clawing at his back.

He ripped opened the night shirt he had put on her, and pounced on one of her erect nipples, and enjoyed the way her back arched off the bed, pushing it farther into his mouth.

This was nothing like the tender making of love they had experienced the day before in New York, no, this was ferocious, needy, and angry, a whirlwind of bodies in the sheets, each trying to gain the upper hand, to force dominance.

Finally, Sookie rolled over and without further ado, sunk down on Eric's rigid shaft, causing him to howl in delight and shock. At first she began to rock slowly, to get used to the sensation, but Eric put a stop to that, as with a howl, he lifted her up off him, and then slammed her back down, causing them both to moan in delight.

"Yes, yes, oh my God!" She cried out, rocking her body wildly, moving her body up and down frantically searching for release of any kind.

Eric sensed the dilemma she was in, and began thrusting up with his hips, groping one breast with one hand, and allowing the other to trail down their intermingled bodies, to play with her clit. That was all she needed, and with a shriek, she came, going rigid on his cock, as he came with her, groaning out her name, thrusting sporadically into her pussy.

She collapsed on top of his body, and as their bodies and blood cooled, Sookie could feel Eric shaking beneath her, and she looked down at him to see him laughing. "What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking that I really must get you angry more often my love, I might get laid more."

With a huff and a laugh, Sookie grabbed a pillow and smacked him in the face with it, starting an epic pillow fight that only ended when Eric called a truce and kissed her soundly on the lisps, starting a war of an entirely different kind altogether.

**A/N: Up quicker than usual, and I hope you liked. Hopefully the posting schedule will go as follows from now on: **

**Mondays: Shattered  
Wednesdays: Nothing Personal  
Fridays: Heist**

**Well aware this is a day late, but whatever, started work today! Support Stacie will be having another auction from March 26-29, and I am up for auction once again! This was a SS auction fic winner, so if you enjoy this or any of my other stories, crack open your checkbooks for a good cause, and let me make all your fic dreams come true! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, thanks for reading! **


	4. Heist: The Bank Job

A brunette woman walked into a bank, and immediately all eyes turned in her direction, it was impossible not to notice her. Her clothes were draped across her body in a way that signaled that they were clearly designer. Her skirt showed plenty of leg, without being slutty, and her blouse was fairly low cut that showed off a rather ample amount of cleavage, but she pulled it off without being trashy.

She stopped half way into the lobby and looked around hesitantly, clearly looking for someone to help her. All of the male tellers on the floor, and even a couple of women, including the manager immediately headed towards the woman and began vying for her attention.

Their attention was detracted however when the doors of the bank slammed open and six men barged in, waving guns around. They were no amateurs, two of them setting up position by the doors, two herding the tellers out from behind the gates, and the final two going up to the group of tellers, grabbing the manager, and dragging her towards the back.

A seventh man walked in with another following him slightly behind. He pulled out a pistol from his waist coast pocket and shot a couple of rounds in the air making everyone shriek and duck. He was tall with brown hair and mustache, with a giant cowboy hat on his hair, and a huge belt buckle.

"Okay everyone, get on the ground, and slide your cell phones towards the center of the room. Don't do anything funny because yes indeed, this _is _a robbery!" He hollered out in a southern voice, and everyone immediately obeyed him, and within a minute there were thirty cell phones sliding across the floor.

The only person who had not obeyed him was the brunette woman, who was still standing. The man who came in behind the southern ring leader moved over to her, grabbed her gently by the arm, and led her out of the bank. As they passed the southern man, he tipped his hat and winked to the woman causing her to giggle.

The man and woman walked out of the bank side by side and then immediately parted ways, with him going left, and her turning right.

Within the bank, the southern man was still standing with his pistol in the air, his eyes darting around everywhere, making note of anything and everything that was going on.

The men who had disappeared with the manager in the back came out, still tugging her along, both of them carrying large money bags in their hands. When the other men saw them, they abandoned their positions and walked the men out of the bank, their guns at the ready.

The leader waited until they were completely out of the building and in a waiting car before he tipped his hat once more and said, "Y'all have a good day, y'hear?" He turned and walked away jauntily, his black cowboy boots clicking on the marble floor.

He too entered the waiting car, and then was gone with the rest of his men.

They were in and out under ten minutes.

* * *

Later that evening Sookie and Eric were sitting in their hotel feeding each other chocolate covered strawberries. "Wait," he murmured, "You have some chocolate… right… there." He leaned closer and closer with each word until he punctuated his statement by licking the chocolate off of her cheek, making her blush.

"So things went well today," she said conversationally after getting over her embarrassment.

He brightened up at the aspect of talking about one of their jobs, which was one of his favorite things to do. "Yes, it went very well, we got over 500 thousand in cash on premise and two million transferred electronically to the account. All thanks to my beautiful accomplice," he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her in close to his body.

"Well they guys were very efficient today, and I noticed that Tray put in some hair gel," she giggled, snuggling in closer to him, so she was practically glued to his side.

He gave her A Look. "That's not what I meant, and you know it."

She giggled some more at his expression. "I know, I did look fabulous as a brunette, didn't I? Maybe I should just dye my hair?"

"Don't you dare," he growled out, kissing the top of her hair, and then petting it lovingly.

"Okay, I won't," she said simply, kissing him simply on the lips, and then bringing her head back down to his chest.

They sat entwined around each other in silence; occasionally leaning together to kiss each other on the lips, though there was nothing overtly sexual about it. They were simply enjoying their time together, saying very little, and rarely anything of substance.

After sitting in silence for minutes, Sookie broke the relative quiet and said quietly, "Eric, I have something to tell you."

"What is it my love?" He asked absently, running his finger up and down her arm.

She paused, and then took a deep breath. "I'm pregnant."

She felt him stiffen next to her, and she looked up at him as he pulled away slightly, and saw him staring down at her in shock. "You're what?" He whispered, running his hands through his hair frantically, she could tell by the way his eyes were flickering rapidly that he was thinking fast. About what, she had no idea.

"I'm pregnant!" She said joyfully, sitting up on their knees and kissing him on the cheek, though he seemed to be frozen in shock. "Eric, are you alright?"

He shook himself out of his stupor long enough to ask in a daze, "Where? How far along?"

"Two months, remember that night in Chicago? The angry sex?" She waggled her eyebrows at him, and burst into giggles, but they slowly stopped when he didn't laugh along with her, he didn't smile even. He got up from the bed, turning his back to her.

"Eric?" She asked in a worried tone. This was not what she was expecting. She had thought he would be happy, laugh along with her, look at her stomach, anything other than this terrifying silence.

"Get out."

"What?" She asked in a panic.

"I said, get out."

"No! Why?" She burst into tears, and she began to breathe hard, feeling like she was moments away from a full blown panic attack.

She watched as he set his shoulders, and he spoke to her in a tone she'd never heard from him before, at least not directed at her. "Are you stupid Sookie? You're my accomplice, my distracter; you attract men to you like bees to honey. It's hard to do that if you're pregnant!" He shouted, still not turning towards her.

"But… but you said you loved me," she whimpered out, placing a hand protectively on top of her stomach.

"Of course I said that," he sneered. "But you're pregnant now, I can't use you, and now I want you out. Take your clothes with you."

She gasped, but didn't say anything more, afraid that if she did, she would completely break down, but she knew that wasn't healthy for her baby. So she would stay strong, leave, and forget all about him. She turned on her heel and marched into the bedroom closet and slammed the door.

"Don't forget to take your jewelry," he called out.

The moment he heard the door slam, Eric let his body morph from the strong and rigid posture he presented, into a bowed and warped figure, the very picture of a broken man.

He could hear her in the closet rummaging around, could hear things being thrown, and after twenty minutes, he heard her emerge, and he immediately straightened back up, staring out across the city sky line without actually seeing it.

He could feel her pausing, waiting for him to say something, but he remained mute. He heard her place something on the bedside table, and then heard her whisper, "Goodbye Eric."

He remained silent and still, and with a quiet sigh, she made her way out of the bedroom and down the hallway. A moment later he heard the door shut quietly as she moved out into the hotel's main hallway, and he broke down.

He collapsed on the floor clutching his wedding ring and just lay there, for how long, he didn't know, and he figured it didn't even matter anyway. He finally figured that he had to get up and make arrangements over Sookie and their… no. He wouldn't allow himself to think about the baby until he knew that they were both safe.

He pulled out his cell phone, and was about to make a call when he notice what she left on the bedside table. The hotel room key card. He figured that before he made any calls he would check to see what clothes she had taken with him, to better pinpoint where she might be headed.

He braced himself, and then entered the closet they use to share. As expected he felt immense pain upon seeing her side of the closet relatively empty. She had left all of evening gowns still on the rack, with their matching shoes still lined up neatly beneath them. Most of her expensive pumps and designer purses were still left on the shelves, but her more practical flats and less extravagant bags were gone. She had also taken all of her pants and jeans, and pretty much all of her shirts. He was marginally pleased that she was packing practically.

He moved over to the safe cleverly located behind a floor length mirror, and opened it to see if she had obeyed him and taken her jewelry with her. He figured that she was an extremely practical woman, and if she ever fell on hard times, she would just be able to sell her jewelry, if she needed the money. She had not, however, taken the jewelry. It was still sitting there, right where it was placed by her almost two months previously.

There was one thing different about the set up, and that was the well worn red ring box that he recognized rather easily. He would, he had carried the box that held his mother's ring around in his pocket for five weeks straight before getting up the courage to ask her to marry him.

He reached for it, and opened it, afraid of what he might find, and nearly wept when he saw the sparkling ring sitting snugly in its position.

He snapped the box shut and returned it to its spot, and then slammed the safe door closed. He strode angrily out of the closet, thrusting the doors closed behind him, and pulling out his cell phone, making the first of what was sure to be many, many calls.

"Hey Alcide? It's Eric. I need you to do something, it's about Sookie."

* * *

**A/N: Okay, don't hate me 'kay? There is a method to my madness. This story is winding down, only one more chapter, and then an epilogue. Questions will be answered, swear. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed!**


	5. Operation: Surveillance and Retirement

_2 Months Later_

"What the fuck Sam! I sent you there to protect her, not hire her on for slave labor! Make it stop…. I don't give a flying fuck how proud she is, she should not, and will not be working in her condition, especially in your shitty bar! What do I want you to do? I want you to fire her! … She'll find another job? Ger her fired from that one then! It's a small town, how hard could it be? I don't care how or what you do, but make her unhireable! Tell the whole town she's a whore, I don't care! Make it so her only option is to sit around all day and kick up her feet; and if I so much as hear even a whisper that she's doing something even as little as picking dirty laundry off the floor, then your only option will be to run away, far, far away."

Eric finished shouting into his phone and then snapped it shut before turning around and throwing to at the wall in rage. He strode to the door, threw it open and yelled out to his assistant, "Bobby, get me a new fucking phone!"

He slammed the door shut and began pacing the length of the room, clutching and tearing at his hair in anger and frustration.

He stopped and took a look around. He wasn't staying at the Waldorf, even though he was in New York, he refused to step in that place until Sookie was back by his side, but still, his abode was just as nice. His surroundings in his hotel room were as lavish as ever, but without Sookie there with him, everything felt bare.

Her closet was empty, and her side of the bed was cold, and it drove him crazy!

He knew where she was of course, since the day she had left their suite; he had had men following her, across the US, until she finally settled in England in a little cottage.

It took everything he had not to go after her, and he had to remind himself for what felt like the millionth time that the separation was for Sookie's protection.

She was everything to him, and when he found out she was pregnant, he knew that she couldn't stay in his dangerous world any longer. He knew she would never willingly leave his side, so he did what he had to do, and kicked her out.

However, she had never truly escaped his presence. From the moment she had left their hotel room, he had had men who owed him favors across the globe following her, and guarding her with their lives.

Eventually she had moved to a tiny town in England that they had visited once together, and it was so small, that he decided it was unnecessary for her to have hordes of guards, and it was also impossible to place them in the town and make them look inconspicuous.

So he sent Sam Merlotte, a 'friend' who owed him a very big favor, to buy the local tavern and befriend Sookie, and thus watch over her 24/7.

So busy was he in his musings that he didn't hear the intruder in his room until he heard the click of a high heel on the tile floor. He immediately turned and whipped his gun from his waistband and aimed it at the unwelcome visitor.

When he saw who it was, he cursed and put the weapon back in his waistband. "By all means Pam, just walk right on in, don't announce yourself or anything," He said dryly, padding over to the liquor bar and pouring himself a healthy amount of gin. He raised an eyebrow at his guest, and she shook her head, so he capped the bottle, and then threw himself into an armchair across the room so he could keep an eye on her.

"I didn't expect for you to be startled. You must be losing your touch Northman." He snorted at that, and took a swig from his glass, and she smirked at his reaction before continuing. "Of course I've heard that's not the only thing you've lost recently." He immediately straightened up with a snarl, slamming his glass down on the table next to him, and preparing to rise, but she held up her hands in surrender. "Down boy," She said sweetly. "I didn't mean to offend, just merely sought to clarify facts. Cleary, I was right. Anyways, you summoned, I'm here. Now what do you want? I have a gorgeous girl named Theresa waiting for me back in the Maldives, and the longer I'm with you, is the longer I'm not… _with _her."

He raised his eyebrows in amusement. He forgot how amusing Pam could be, when she wasn't annoying the living shit out of him of course. As an accomplice she was also invaluable, with a deadly combination of being both gorgeous and lethal. She wasn't the perfect replacement for Sookie, but she would do. It also helped that she was in semi-retirement, and thus wasn't seen often, and she was as loyal as a dog, once you had earned it.

He counted himself lucky that he had earned her loyalty, and leaned forward to confide in her. "This is it Pam, the last job," He ignored her gaping at him and continued. "One last big heist, and then I'm getting out."

She still stared at him in shock, and once again he could feel himself getting annoyed. Finally she spluttered out, "But why?"

He drained his glass, and then set it gently back on the table. "I'm expecting a child now Pam, I can't be a criminal master mind anymore, my child is going to need a father. One who is not behind bars." When she still looked befuddled he elaborated. "I knew, and Sookie knew that I couldn't do this forever. I can't be jet setting around Europe lying, thieving and forging forever, I need to settle down and be responsible, and take care of my family."

Still she shook her head in disbelief. "You'll be bored within a year," She declared.

"We'll see," He replied, a mischievous smile playing on his face before going back into business mode. "Now, here's the plan…."

* * *

_3 Months Later_

"What do you mean there might be complications? What the hell kind of quack doctor do you have in that town anyways? Mallard? Literally, a quack? What the fuck Sam? You won't tell me what gender my child is, you don't report to me when I tell you to, and now you're telling me that my wife and child are having _complications_, you're lucky I don't fly over to that backwards ass country and kill you myself…. She's stressed you say? Well then fucking fix it! You're not over there to be an ornament you know! I sent you there to watch over her, protect her, and it sounds to me like you're doing a pretty shitty job of it! …. I understand that you can't just 'de-stress' someone, yes, I am well aware how delicate Sookie is… Now wait a damn second, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were in love with my wife!"

Eric snorted in amusement, though his eyes flashed dangerously in anger. "Well good luck with that, really, let me know how living with _my _wife, and _my _child goes, good luck building a life with them." His voice dropped into a lower octave, and his eyes narrowed into slits. "But Sam, don't get too comfy over there, being my wife's loyal companion, because I'm not staying away forever, and when I go over there, you and I will see who she chooses, hmm?"

When he was done shouting into the phone and had hung up, Pam spoke from her position lounging on the bed sipping champagne, "So I am right to assume that all is going well over there?"

Eric ran his hands through his hair. "I just don't understand why it's so hard to follow orders!"

Pam chuckled lightly at his frustration and slinked off the bed. "Well, you know what they say, while the cat is away, the mice will play." He grunted his acknowledgement of her words, and she began to gently massage the tension in his shoulders away. "Will you relax? This time next month, it will all be over, and you can be at your wife's side, and Sam will be nothing more than a memory. Literally, if you had your way."

He nodded along with her words in satisfaction as images of himself shooting Sam danced along his brain. He could only hope that his wish would be fulfilled. "This time next month," He declared with determination.

* * *

_1 Month Later_

Sookie groaned as she waddled through her tiny little cottage, getting exasperated as she had to stop every so often to rest and catch her breath. She knew pregnancy would be a strain, but she never realized how bad it would actually be. At eight months of pregnancy, she was ready for it all to stop, and thanked her lucky stars that she only had one more month to go.

Morning sickness did not typically confine itself to the morning, she had developed a weird attraction to pickles that was not apparent prior to her being 'with child', and she was currently in one of those hostile mood swings due to the fact that she was pretty sure her shoes did not match. She was in no position to tell, as her stomach had grown so large she now no longer ate at the dinner table, just laid on the couch and balanced her plate on her belly.

Finally, after much pausing and resting, and much more cursing, she made it to her destination, and looked about it sighing with satisfaction. She had arrived to her sanctuary, her children's nursery. When she had found out she was pregnant with twins, she was flabbergasted to be sure, but quickly became excited at the idea of having twice the children to love.

It left her in quite the dilemma over the nursery however, as she did not want it to appear it to be too feminine, nor be the same token, too masculine. Finally she had gone with the norm and painted it a nice appealing shade of buttercup yellow, with yellow and white striped wallpaper lining the bottom.

If space had allowed it, she would have given them separate rooms, but as it were, the three of them in the little cottage, even as tiny as they were, would be a squeeze, sometimes literally. Plus, she had read in her baby books that it was not recommended to separate the twins, even having them sleeping in separate cribs was not recommended. So she bought a bigger crib, so as to fit the both of them, in pristine white, along with their changing table, armoire, and rocking chair. She could not afford much, but she did the best she could on a limited budget.

When she had first come to England she had gotten by financially through the generosity of Sam, the local tavern owner who graciously hired the strange pregnant foreigner. Now, however since he'd forced her to quit working at the bar, he now paid all of her bills for her despite her protests.

She entered the room, and picked up a hand crocheted pink blanket that was lovingly folded next to the matching blue blanket. Carefully and painstakingly stitched in each corners were the names she'd picked out for her beloved children.

_Alexander and Kathleen_

While she would have preferred for Eric to pick the names with her, she knew that was just a pipe dream, and she had to consider things realistically. She refused to give her twins cutesy matching alliterate names, and instead gave them names that held some meaning to her.

She chose Alexander because she thought it was a strong, bold name, and hoped that her little man would have all these attributes, just like his father. Kathleen was chosen because she thought it was one of the most beautiful names in the world, and because it was her Gran's middle name.

She gently set the blankets back down, and wiped a tear from her eye. It saddened her greatly that her children would never know the love of their father, just like she too would never have the love of Eric again, and, as the months between last seeing him stretched longer and longer, she began contemplating whether or not she ever had his love to begin with.

She straightened up, and held back her tears through her will alone. She had decided when Eric had first kicked her out, that she would be strong, that she would not fall to her knees and just give up, and she would not break that promise now.

With one last look around, she left the room and painstakingly made her way into the living room where she settled down to watch '_Are You Being Served?_' her favorite British comedy. Midway through however, it was interrupted by the fast paced music that usually accompanied a news broadcast, and immediately, a solemn faced news reporter showed up on screen.

"Earlier today, in America," The man began, looking deeply into the camera for emphasis, "Another bank was robbed by the notorious con man, Eric Northman." Sookie gasped and sat up quickly, or as quickly as her condition would allow. "However, this bank job was not to go as planned for Northman. Shortly after taking over the bank, the SWAT team swarmed inside, and amidst the melee, Northman was shot." Sookie couldn't believe her ears, and immediately felt her eyes fill with tears.

"While Northman's identity has never truly been captured on film, or by witnesses before, accomplices that were captured confirmed that the shot man was indeed Northman. Despite the SWAT team's arrival, over 5 million dollars in funds was transferred electronically to an untraceable bank account. This heist, had it been successful, would have been Northman's 52nd, he is also well known across the world for…."

As the reporter rambled on and on about Eric and his stats, Sookie blocked him out, tears streaming down her face as shaking fingers dialed her phone. When she heard the click that signaled someone had picked up, she whispered, "Sam, will you come over? Something's happened."

After hearing his assurances that he would be over right away, she sagged down on the couch and began to weep hysterically, one hand placed protectively over her stomach.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, but I truly hoped you enjoyed the last chapter of Heist! Next will be the epilogue, which, if all goes according to plan, should be up sometime next week.**

**Later on tonight, or tomorrow, I will be posting the Support Stacie story won by the ever fabulous Bloodsucker815. It is entitled, 'Hey Batter, Batter' and it will be a smutty one shot. And that's it, PWP people! Just smut, just the way we like it! I would like to thank Bloodsucker815 for her generous donation, her understanding on my delays, her decision to basically give me free reign creatively wise, and her acceptance to me writing a smutty one shot. As you all heard with The Love Hotel, I am currently practicing my lemons, you all approved of the last one, so here's to hoping this next one meets all of your gracious plenty standards!**

**Thanks for reading!**


	6. Epilogue

_Six Years Later_

"Yes, Eric, yes! Right there, harder, faster!" Sookie was moaning as Eric moved on top of her, faster and faster until she was so close to her completion that she could almost feel it.

"What are you guys doing?"

Sookie's eyes popped open, and she shrieked, causing Eric to immediately withdraw. She panicked and drew him closer to her while she frantically brought the crumpled sheets up to cover the both of them.

"Alexander! What are you doing in here; I thought the door was locked!" Sookie was trying not to freak out, but she was finding it difficult, especially as Eric seemed to find the situation funny and was currently laughing hysterically into her shoulder.

"Dad showed me a really cool trick."

Immediately Eric's shoulder's stopped shaking, and Sookie's panicked expression faded into one of forced calmness, and when he looked up at his wife and saw that expression on her face, he suddenly felt very fearful.

"Alexander, mommy and daddy were just exercising, please go back upstairs and keep an eye on your sister."

The six year old immediately obeyed and left the doorway. Sookie waited until she could hear the familiar pitter patter of little feet going up the stairs, and then began banging her open palm against Eric's shoulder. "Get. Off. Of. Me. You. Ass!"

He scrambled off of her quickly and put his boxers back on, and tossed her her robe that she hurriedly fastened onto her body while still glaring at him. For his part, he just waited silently, albeit fearfully for when she would speak. He knew it wouldn't be pretty.

It wasn't.

"Eric Northman, you taught our son how to _pick locks_?" He cringed. Whenever she said his full name, he was shit out of luck. With longing he stared at his comfy bed. He wouldn't be sleeping there tonight. "How could you do that? When you came here, you swore to me that you were choosing _me_, you were choosing _us _over that life, and now you're teaching Alexander how to pick locks?"

He was speechless. There was nothing he could say in defense of himself, because she was right, he _had _sworn to her that he was leaving the thieving lifestyle for good, to be a true family with her.

* * *

_Six Years Ago_

"_Push Sookie, push, come on sweetheart, you're at the home stretch here, the first one's done, now you just need to bring little Kathleen into the world, everyone wants to see her beautiful face."_

_Sookie huffed and puffed as Sam let her squeeze the ever loving shit out of his hand without ever once flinching. Through the past nine months, he had been amazing to her, and now he was at her side as she gave birth, acting as her own personal cheerleader._

_Alexander had already made his entrance into the world, and he was still screaming and crying, and to Sookie it sounded like he was impatient for his little twin sister to be by his side again, and she was trying her hardest to fulfill her little boy's wishes._

_She yelled out as another contraction passed through her, but was startled by a commotion in the hallway right outside her hospital room door._

"_I am family you bureaucratic piece of shit! I'm her fucking husband, now let me in or I'll shove your head so far up your ass…."_

"_Oh shit." Sam said, and dropped her hand. She was taken away from the moment as another contraction washed over her and she screamed out._

_Immediately the door slammed open, and she was looking up at her estranged husband, who looked entirely freaked out. However, she wasn't sure if he was actually there, or if the drugs and the pain were making her exceptionally loopy._

"_Eric?" She asked faintly, as in the background she could hear the doctor telling her that he daughter was coming._

"_I'm here, älskare, I'm here at last." He strode across the room, and practically shoved Sam out of the way to be at her side. She looked up at him in wonderment, but then tore her gaze from him as the mother of all contractions hit her, and recognizing the feeling from the birth of Alexander, she braced herself for her daughter's arrival into the world._

_She was not disappointed as shortly after the feeling, she heard a slurping noise and then more shrieks, intermingling with Alexander's, and great sense of relief passed through her, and her body went limp._

_Eric stared down at Sookie. She was sweating, and her hair was everywhere, and she was still faintly cursing like a sailor, but to him, his wife had never looked more beautiful. As soon as he had heard that the ruse he'd pulled with planting the fall guy had worked, he'd hopped onto the next plane to England. Apparently, not a moment too soon._

_He was knocked out of his admiration of his wife as across the room, he heard from the nurses attending to his daughter, "Bag her, bag her, we're losing her." There was a great flurry of movement, and in the confusion he was knocked to the side, and all he could do was stare helplessly at the massive huddle of people surrounding his daughter._

_Alexander's cries had quieted as if he knew what a somber moment this was, and Eric brought his shaking hands to his face, only to bring them back, staring in amazement at the tears coating his fingers. He looked over at Sookie quickly to see how she was taking it, but she was so out of it from drugs, he was pretty sure she didn't know where she was at that moment._

_Finally after what felt like an eternity to him, the crowd surrounding his daughter dispersed, and to his great relief he saw her waving an impossibly tiny fist in the air. The nurses were laughing in relief, some were crying, and the head doctor approached him, and said gently, "Mr. Northman, you're daughter is fine now, would you like to see her?"_

_All he could do was nod. He was led, stumbling, over to where his daughter was now placed in a containment unit next to his son. He stared in awe at his perfect children. If there was any doubt that they might not be identical twins, it was erased in that moment. They were two halves of the same puzzle, and for a brief moment he found himself oddly relieved that they were not of the same gender. His son appeared to be sleeping, but his daughter was staring up at him, and with a shock, he realized that she had his eyes. _

_He placed his hand on the glass box, wishing desperately that he knew what Sookie wanted to name them, wishing he had a name to put to the angelic face. _

"_Kathleen. Her name is Kathleen, and her brother is Alexander." A voice from behind him spoke, and he turned to see Sam Merlotte staring at his children with longing in his eyes._

"_Alexander and Kathleen, those are good, strong names." He approved of Sookie's choice, though he would have anyway, by sheer virtue of the fact that Sookie chose them._

"_That's why she chose them." The longing was obvious when he spoke, and Eric cut him sharply with his gaze._

"_You may go now, you're work is done, I am relieving you."_

_The sandy haired man gave him a dirty glare, another faint, loving glance to the infants in front of him, and then left the room quickly._

"_Eric…." He heard Sookie whisper from across the room, and he quickly made his way back to her side. _

"_Lover, rest now. You need your sleep."_

_She closed her eyes, but not before whispering, "Lover, huh? I thought I would never hear that again."_

_It was hours later that, as Sookie nursed a hungry Alex, and Eric held a sleeping Kathleen, that he finally finished explaining everything to her, especially emphasizing that it was all done for her protection._

_She was quiet for a long while, and he brace himself for her reaction. He was surprised when she spoke. "Fine, I accept what you had to do to protect me and the children, but I'm telling you now, if you're with me, you're _with me. _There is no jetting around Europe stealing paintings, no hopping back to the U.S to forge a bond. You stay with me. You stay with your family."_

_He looked down at the sleeping babe in his arms, and then to the one in his mother's arms, sucking voraciously at her breast. Finally, he brought his gaze back up to the most beautiful woman in the world. "Sookie, lover, wild horses couldn't drag me away."_

* * *

Finally he spoke. "I'm sorry."

Just like that, all the fight seeped out from her, and her shoulders sagged. "You don't say that often."

"Only when I mean it."

"I just want us to be normal."

"I know you do lover, and for the most part, we will be, but you will admit, lock picking can be a useful tool to have. And I promise not to teach him how to rappel down the side of a building until he's older."

She snorted a laugh at that, and approached him and wrapped her arms languidly around his neck, kissing the tip of his nose playfully. "I love you."

He kissed her back, though on the lips, and with much more passion. "I know, and I love you my lover."

They kissed once more, but were interrupted by a loud thump from above them, silence, and then a loud wail cut through the whole house.

"Mom, dad, Kathleen fell off the couch!"

"NO I DIDN'T, YOU PUSHED ME!"

"DID NOT!"

"DID TOO!"

They sighed in unison and leaned together, their foreheads touching. "Will you take care of that while I hop in the shower?" She asked, nipping at his lower lip sensually.

"Will I get to join in when I come back?" He asked, already turning and striding out of the bedroom.

She smacked him on the ass, causing him to turn and pierce her with a smoldering gaze. "If you're lucky."

She heard his low chuckled as he left the room, the one that promised that he wasn't going to be the only one to get lucky.

She dropped her robe and headed into the bathroom with a satisfied smile on her face. She loved her family.

_Fin._

* * *

**A/N: There it is. Done. I hoped you enjoyed this crazy ride of mine! Next to be updated will be Nothing Personal, and then Shattered obviously. Those will be on a rotation, though I have no set updating schedule as of yet. Thanks for reading.**

**You may find me on twitter under this name.**

**Don't forget to enter the Kiss A Cook Contest! Link for the contest profile is on my author profile!**


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